Leave Travel Concession
Leave Travel Concession lets a central government employee claim travel fare to the home town or across India. Block years, family, entitlement, and the tax rule.
Leave Travel Concession (LTC) is the facility under which a central government employee and the members of the family are reimbursed the travel fare for a journey, performed during leave, to the home town or to any place in India. It is governed by the Central Civil Services (Leave Travel Concession) Rules, 1988, framed by the Department of Personnel and Training , which is the nodal department for LTC. It reimburses the fare only, the cost of getting there and back by the entitled class, not hotel, food or local travel.
LTC is one of the more valued benefits of central service, and also one of the most rule-bound, because the entitlement depends on a block-year cycle, the definition of family, the pay level, the airline and the agent used, and the deadline for the claim, and because its tax exemption is available in only one of the two tax regimes. This article sets out what LTC is, the two types and the block system, who counts as family, the special treatment of fresh recruits, the travel entitlement by pay level, the advance and claim rules, the special-area dispensation, and the income-tax exemption. It should not be confused with transport allowance , which is a monthly commuting allowance, or with travelling allowance, which is for official duty; LTC borrows the class-of-travel entitlements of those rules but is a separate facility for personal travel on leave.
What LTC is
LTC reimburses the fare for a journey made while the employee is on leave, including casual leave. The Rules apply to persons appointed to civil services and posts in connection with the affairs of the Union, with exclusions for railway servants, casual and daily-rated staff, and those covered by their own departmental schemes. The concession is for the fare of the entitled class both ways; it does not extend to any other cost of the trip. Because it is tied to leave and to actual travel, an employee cannot claim it without performing the journey, and the claim must be supported by tickets.
The two types and the block-year system
There are two types of LTC under the Rules. Home Town LTC is admissible once in a block of two years, for travel to the declared home town. All India LTC, that is LTC to any place in India, is admissible once in a block of four years. Within a four-year block, availing the All India LTC uses up one of the two-year Home Town entitlements, so an employee cannot draw both a Home Town and an All India LTC for the same sub-block.
The blocks run on a fixed calendar cycle of four years, each split into two two-year sub-blocks. The current four-year block is 2026 to 2029, with sub-blocks of 2026-2027 and 2028-2029; the previous block, 2022 to 2025, closed on 31 December 2025. An LTC not availed within its block may be carried forward and availed in the first year of the next block. So a Home Town LTC of the 2024-2025 sub-block, or the All India LTC of the 2022-2025 block, that went unused could still be availed up to 31 December 2026. This creates a genuine double-benefit window: in the first year of a new block, an employee may hold both a carried-forward entitlement from the old block and the fresh entitlement of the new one, claimed as separate journeys.
Who counts as family
The definition of family under the Rules is wider than many employees assume, and the dependency condition is the part that catches people out. Family includes the spouse, who is treated as family without any income condition; two surviving unmarried children or step-children wholly dependent on the employee, with no upper age bar for a wholly-dependent unmarried child; dependent parents residing with and wholly dependent on the employee; and, in defined circumstances, dependent unmarried, widowed, divorced or separated sisters and dependent minor brothers.
Two limits apply. The two-child norm restricts LTC to two surviving children, a restriction effective from 20 October 1997, with exceptions for those who already had more than two children before that date, for a child born within a year of it, and where the number exceeds two because of a multiple birth. And the dependency income ceiling requires that a family member other than the spouse have income from all sources, including any pension, not exceeding Rs. 9,000 a month plus the dearness relief on it, a figure aligned with the 7th CPC minimum pension. A parent or child whose own income crosses that ceiling is not a dependant for LTC, however closely related.
Declaring and changing the home town
Home Town LTC is available only to the place the employee has declared as the home town. On first appointment, an employee declares the home town, the place of permanent residence or the place with which the employee has enduring ties, and it is recorded in the service book and accepted by the Head of Office. The declaration is tested against factors such as where the employee’s near relatives reside, where the employee owns property, and where the employee would ordinarily return after retirement, so that the home town is a genuine place of connection and not merely a preferred destination.
The declared home town can be changed, but only once in the entire service, and only with the sanction of the Head of Department, on the same tests. This one-change limit is strict, so an employee should declare the home town with care at the outset, because a hasty declaration cannot be undone more than once. All India LTC, by contrast, is to any place in India and needs no such declaration, which is part of why the two types serve different purposes: Home Town LTC keeps an employee connected to a fixed place, and All India LTC opens up the country.
Fresh recruits: the first eight years
A person entering central government service for the first time gets a more generous LTC in the first eight years. In place of the ordinary block cycle, a fresh recruit is entitled to eight LTCs in the first eight years, being six Home Town and two All India: in each block of four years reckoned from the date of joining, three Home Town LTCs and one All India LTC. The eight years and the two four-year blocks are personal to the recruit, counted from the initial date of joining on a calendar-year basis, and are not the regular 2026-2029 cycle. There is no carry-forward within the fresh-recruit period, so an unused yearly entitlement lapses at the year end.
The eight-year clock runs from the first appointment and survives a technical resignation : an employee who moves to another government post within eight years remains a fresh recruit for the balance of the eight years. After the eight years, the employee joins the regular block cycle. This fresh-recruit dispensation is set by Department of Personnel and Training Office Memorandum No. 31011/7/2013-Estt.A-IV dated 26 September 2014, consolidated in the department’s frequently-asked-questions memorandum dated 1 July 2025.
Travel entitlement by pay level
LTC travel follows the class-of-travel entitlements fixed for travelling allowance, set by the Ministry of Finance in Office Memorandum No. 19030/1/2017-E.IV dated 13 July 2017, applied to the levels of the pay matrix .
| Pay-matrix level | Air-travel position on LTC |
|---|---|
| Level 14 and above | Business or club class, subject to the LTC-80 fare ceiling |
| Levels 9 to 13 | Economy class by air |
| Levels 6 to 8 | Rail by the entitled class; air only under the special-area relaxation |
| Levels 5 and below | Rail by the entitled class; air only under the special-area relaxation |
Where air travel is allowed, the rule on which airline and which fare matters. An entitled employee may travel by any airline, but the reimbursement is capped at the Air India LTC-80 economy fare or the actual fare, whichever is lower, and business class for Level 14 and above is still subject to that ceiling. Tickets must be booked at the cheapest fare available for the sector and time. This position is set by Department of Personnel and Training Office Memorandum No. 31011/12/2022-Estt.A-IV dated 29 August 2022, read with the memorandum dated 20 October 2023.
The single most common cause of a rejected air claim is booking through the wrong agent. Air tickets for LTC must be booked directly from the airline or through one of the three authorised agents only: Balmer Lawrie and Company, Ashok Travels and Tours, and the IRCTC. A ticket bought through any other agent makes the claim inadmissible, however genuine the journey.
Advance, claim and time limits
An employee may draw an advance of up to 90 per cent of the estimated fare both ways. Where the advance is drawn, the tickets must be produced within ten days, and the advance is refunded in full if the outward journey does not begin within 30 days of its grant.
The deadline to submit the claim depends on whether an advance was drawn. With an advance, the claim must be submitted within one month of completing the return journey; a failure means the entire advance is recovered in one lump sum. Without an advance, the claim must be submitted within three months, and a failure entails forfeiture of the claim. Ministries and departments may, with the concurrence of the financial adviser, relax these limits within delegated powers, up to six months where no advance was drawn and up to three months where an advance was drawn and is refunded, without a reference to the Department of Personnel and Training. These time limits, in Rules 14 and 15 of the CCS (LTC) Rules, are strict, and a forfeited claim is rarely revived.
The special-area dispensation
A special dispensation permits air travel to visit the North East Region, the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir, the Union Territory of Ladakh, and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, in relaxation of the ordinary rules, against the conversion of one Home Town LTC in a four-year block. An employee entitled to air may fly in the entitled class by any airline; an employee not entitled to air may still fly economy by any airline to these areas from the headquarters, subject to the booking and reimbursement conditions above. A fresh recruit may convert one Home Town LTC for such a visit, with an additional conversion specifically to visit Jammu and Kashmir or Ladakh.
The dispensation is granted for a period and periodically extended. It is in force up to 25 September 2026 under Department of Personnel and Training Office Memorandum No. 31011/15/2022-Estt.A-IV dated 17 September 2024, so an employee planning such a trip should check whether it has been extended before travelling.
The income-tax exemption
The fare reimbursed under LTC is exempt from income tax under Section 10(5) of the Income-tax Act, 1961, read with Rule 2B of the Income-tax Rules, 1962, but the exemption is narrower than the LTC facility itself and it is available in only one regime.
The exemption is for the actual travel fare for two journeys in a block of four calendar years, the tax block running on the same cycle as the LTC block; the current tax block is 2026 to 2029. One unclaimed journey may be carried to the first calendar year of the next block. The fare exemption is capped by Rule 2B: for air travel, the economy fare of the national carrier by the shortest route; where the places are connected by rail and air is not used, the air-conditioned first-class rail fare by the shortest route; and in every case the lower of the actual fare or the amount provided, covering fare only.
The load-bearing point is the regime. The Section 10(5) exemption is available only under the old tax regime. Under the default new regime it is not allowed, so an employee on the new regime who receives LTC is taxed on it in full. This is one of the exemptions that can tip a high-LTC employee toward the old regime, a comparison worked through in the old versus new tax regime and income tax for government employees articles.
Planning LTC across a block: an example
Take an employee, past the eight-year fresh-recruit period, in the 2026 to 2029 block. In the first sub-block, 2026-2027, the employee can take either a Home Town LTC or, using up that sub-block, the All India LTC of the four-year block; in the second sub-block, 2028-2029, a Home Town LTC. A common plan is to take Home Town LTC in the first sub-block and save the All India LTC for a longer family trip in the second, which then consumes the second Home Town entitlement. If the employee also had an unused Home Town LTC from the 2024-2025 sub-block, it could be carried into 2026 and claimed as a separate journey, giving two claims in that year.
A fresh recruit’s plan is different. Counting four-year blocks from the date of joining, the recruit takes three Home Town LTCs and one All India LTC in the first block and the same in the second, eight in all across eight years, with no carry-forward, so each year’s entitlement must be used in the year or it lapses. Mapping out the eight years at the start avoids losing an entitlement, and a fresh recruit paying rent and travelling home often finds the six Home Town LTCs the more valuable half of the package. In both cases the sensible discipline is to plan the block at the start, because an entitlement not used in its window is either carried just one year or lost.
Common errors
- Confusing LTC with travelling allowance. LTC is for personal travel on leave and reimburses fare only; travelling allowance is for official duty.
- Booking air tickets through a non-authorised agent, which makes the claim inadmissible. Use the airline directly or Balmer Lawrie, Ashok Travels and Tours, or the IRCTC.
- Assuming the LTC exemption survives in the new tax regime. It is available only under the old regime.
- Missing the claim deadline. One month with an advance, three months without; a forfeited claim is rarely revived.
- A fresh recruit applying the regular block cycle instead of the personal eight-year cycle from joining.
- Claiming for a family member whose income exceeds the Rs. 9,000 plus dearness relief ceiling. The spouse is the only member exempt from the income condition.
- Treating the two-year Home Town and four-year All India entitlements as independent. Using the All India LTC consumes a Home Town sub-block entitlement.
Frequently asked questions
What is the current LTC block year for central government employees?
How many LTCs does a fresh recruit get in the first eight years?
Who counts as family for LTC, and what is the income limit for a dependant?
Can I fly by any airline on LTC?
By when must I submit my LTC claim?
Is LTC exempt from income tax under the new tax regime?
Can I use LTC to visit Kashmir or the North East instead of my home town?
See also
- Maternity leave (central government)
- Child care leave
- Transport allowance
- House-rent allowance
- City classification for HRA
- Dearness allowance
- Income tax for government employees
- Old vs new tax regime
- Standard deduction
- Professional tax
- Technical resignation
- Leave encashment
- CCS (Leave) Rules, 1972
- Pay matrix
- 7th Central Pay Commission
- CCS (Revised Pay) Rules, 2016
- Take-home salary for central government employees
- Department of Personnel and Training
- Department of Expenditure
- Central government employees in India
- Children education allowance
- Minimum pay
- Dearness relief
- Section 89 relief
- National Pension System
- Income tax calculator
- HRA exemption calculator
- 7th CPC salary calculator
External references
- Department of Personnel and Training, LTC
- Department of Expenditure, travel entitlements
- Income Tax Department, e-filing portal
- Press Information Bureau
References
- Central Civil Services (Leave Travel Concession) Rules, 1988 (Department of Personnel and Training), Rules 3, 4, 8, 12, 14 and 15.
- Department of Personnel and Training Office Memorandum No. 31011/7/2013-Estt.A-IV dated 26 September 2014 (LTC entitlement of fresh recruits).
- Department of Personnel and Training Office Memorandum No. 31011/4/2008-Estt.(A) dated 23 September 2008 and later clarifications on the dependency income ceiling.
- Ministry of Finance, Department of Expenditure Office Memorandum No. 19030/1/2017-E.IV dated 13 July 2017 (travel entitlements), and Department of Personnel and Training Office Memorandum No. 31011/8/2017-Estt.A-IV dated 18 January 2018 (business class for Level 14 and above).
- Department of Personnel and Training Office Memorandum No. 31011/12/2022-Estt.A-IV dated 29 August 2022, read with the memorandum dated 20 October 2023 (airline booking, the LTC-80 fare ceiling, and authorised agents).
- Department of Personnel and Training Office Memorandum No. 31011/15/2022-Estt.A-IV dated 17 September 2024 (special dispensation for the North East, Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, up to 25 September 2026).
- Department of Personnel and Training consolidated frequently-asked-questions Office Memorandum No. 31011/07/2025-PP.A-IV dated 1 July 2025.
- Income-tax Act, 1961, Section 10(5), read with Rule 2B of the Income-tax Rules, 1962.